: Living in the shadow of the cross

[Totherock]

Mark 8:34-38

34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

38 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

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Title: Living in the shadow of the cross

I do not know all the reason for this but I do see the results.

In spite of all that we may hear, in what many are calling a postmodernism society, I still believe that the message is still as powerful and compelling as it has ever been. Look with me at the characteristics of the message of the cross.

1. The cross calls us to self-denial (v. 34).

A. The self-denial Christ spoke of is the bedrock of discipleship.

When Jesus speaks of self-denial, he is not merely speaking of denying oneself a pleasure or comfort in life; on the contrary, it goes much deeper than that.

Jesus is telling us that we can no longer be the center of our lives.

B. The self-denial Christ spoke of leads us to follow Christ.

 Martin Luther, the religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing.

2. The cross calls us to understand the reality of eternity (v. 35).

A. If we love our lives more than Christ then we have no hope of salvation.

The idea here is that, if we were threatened with death unless we denied Christ, and we denied Christ to save our lives, we lose our hope of eternal life.

B. If we love Christ more than out lives then we have the assurance of salvation.

The other side of this verse teaches us that following Christ without reservation will lead us to eternal life.

3. The cross calls us realize the value of our souls (v. 36-37).

A. Jesus explains that our souls are of more value than the entire world (v. 36).

We live in a society in which, as someone said, we know the cost of everything and the value of nothing.

B. Jesus then asks us consider what we can exchange for something that is priceless (v. 37).

Fortune, fame, power and pleasure. Are those really the things a person should attempt to exchange for their souls?

4. The cross calls us to stand with christ

(v. 38).

We must NOT stand on the side of the world, its system, and its values.

The foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.

Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.

He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are not--to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.

If we are to stand before God at the judgement with confidence, we must stand for Christ now.